Following its acclaimed debut in 2025, the Southbank Centre and Montreux Jazz Festival announce the return of the Southbank Centre x Montreux Jazz Festival Residency, taking place Friday 13 – Sunday 15 March 2026 across the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Purcell Room.
Entering its second year, the three-day residency investigates the question ‘What is Jazz Today?’, this time through the lens of Miles Davis – marking the centenary of his birth. As one of the genre’s greatest innovators, whose numerous performances on the Southbank Centre’s stages spanned two decades of the arts centre’s almost 75-year history, Davis’ restless reinvention provides a touchstone for this year’s programme, which brings together a diverse blend of artists who are reshaping the sound of jazz today.
At its core, the residency provides a platform for artists to honour jazz’s multi-faceted legacy, while pushing its sonic boundaries into new and unexpected places – from Grammy-nominated Theo Croker‘s cosmic soundscapes to Children of Zeus‘ soulful hip-hop inflections and corto.alto‘s genre-fluid improvisation. Each artist embodies the visionary risk-taking and exploratory approach that has defined jazz for over a century.
Mark Ball, Artistic Director of the Southbank Centre, said:“The return of the Southbank Centre x Montreux Jazz Festival Residency showcases jazz at its most boundary-pushing and curious and as an ever evolving form, bringing together artists who are expanding our understanding of jazz. The residency marks the centenary of the legendary Miles Davis, whose pioneering artistry serves as a touchstone for its programme, inspiring both performances and discussions of jazz as a living artistic force. Across the three days, we will welcome to the stage a diversity of perspectives and voices, each shaping the conversation around jazz’s future and its forward-looking, collaborative spirit.”
Mathieu Jaton, CEO of Montreux Jazz Festival, said: “We’re proud to continue our partnership with the Southbank Centre and bring the spirit of Montreux to London once again. The question ‘What is Jazz Today?’ lies at the heart of both Montreux Jazz Festival and this residency — a celebration of artists who, like Miles Davis, challenge conventions, boundaries and keep the music alive as a constantly evolving art form. Together, we aim to inspire new generations of musicians and audiences by honouring jazz’s past while amplifying its vibrant, unpredictable future.”
RESIDENCY LINE-UP
This year’s festival line-up charts jazz as a living, evolving musical language and tradition. Theo Croker (13 Mar) kicks off the three-day residency with a personal tribute to Miles Davis, selecting the works that have most impacted his own sound and presenting them, alongside musical guests, in unexpected ways. Children of Zeus (14 Mar) join forces with members of Tomorrow’s Warriors, the Southbank Centre’s Resident Organisation and pioneering talent-development charity, for two headlining gigs and to create a festival band lineup for the summer. The collaboration bridges generations, uniting two of Manchester’s most respected soul and hip-hop artists with rising jazz musicians, reflecting jazz’s continued tradition of creative exchange. Mercury Music Prize-nominated corto.alto (15 Mar) brings a blistering live set of improvisation, broken-beat bounce and bass-heavy dub, embodying the new expansive and future-facing directions British jazz is taking.
WIDER PUBLIC PROGRAMME OF EVENTS
A key strand of the programming within the residency reimagines how audiences experience, reflect and engage with jazz and its far-reaching roots. As part of the offering of free and ticketed events, there will be a powerful panel discussion in tribute to the late four-time Grammy award-winning artist D’Angelo (15 Mar). As one of the major founders of the 90s neo-soul movement, this free event will dive into D’Angelo‘s most influential albums and seminal tracks that defined his work and profoundly shaped the music and experimentation made by artists today.
The Brit award-winning soul artist Celeste joins writer and music journalist and broadcaster Emma Warren for an in-conversation event (14 Mar) to discuss the influence of jazz on Celeste‘s enriching, ever-evolving sound.
The Five Points Project (13 Mar) hosts a free open jam built around live improvisation, collective musicianship and spontaneous collaboration. Musicians and audiences share the space, shaping the sound in real time — a space for experimentation at the heart of the Southbank Centre x Montreux Jazz Festival Residency.
A special edition of Hidden Tracks (14 Mar), from the series of storytelling events by OneTrackMinds, sees performers share a personal story about a life-changing song, before the song is then played for the audience. For the residency, each story and song will take its own journey to explore what jazz is today. A free, practical Hidden Tracks: Write Your Story (15 Mar) then invites participants to explore the connections between music and narrative, shaping personal stories through music.
ARTIST SHOWCASES
Championing female artists at the forefront of the UK scene, Women in Jazz returns with a showcase (13 Mar) of exceptional live performances and stories from its thriving community of 10,500 musicians, producers and composers. Known for its celebrated programming at Love Supreme Festival and Ronnie Scott’s, the organisation continues to shape the sound of jazz’s future through mentorship, collaboration and visibility.
The Montreux Jazz Artists Foundation (MJAF) continues its mission to champion emerging talent through a Swiss Artist Showcase, highlighting new voices in European jazz. Reflecting the Foundation’s commitment to fostering young musicians and cross-cultural exchange, the showcase features Swiss-Palestinian drummer and composer Ramzi Hammad (15 Mar) leading a genre-blending ensemble that unites Arabic traditions, hip-hop, contemporary jazz, and London improvisation.
Tickets for Southbank Centre x Montreux Jazz Festival Residency go on sale to Southbank Centre Members on Wednesday 19 November 2025 at 10am and general sale on Thursday 20 November 2025 at 10am.
